With Love We Welcome...

 

Samantha Claire Durbin

Born on Mother's Day - May 11, 2008

7 pounds 7 ounces 20 inches

 

Picture This

It's Saturday morning.  All four of us are still in some semblance of pajamas.  I've been in pre-labor for almost 36 hours, so our house has been a flurry of activity the past day, getting things out of storage, washing things like the Boppy cover and receiving blankets, stocking the kitchen with food for the kids, packing a hospital bag, and timing contractions.  After a false alarm last night, with contractions suddenly slowing down, we finally succumbed to sleep sometime in the wee hours of the morning.  Ellie woke up crying around six this morning, which is very out of character for her, but Eric got up with the kids and graciously let me sleep--or try to--until around seven thirty.  We are both very tired at this point; my contractions are more intense and prolonged, but still about thirty minutes apart.  We've continued preparing things while letting Jack watch way too much Diego, and being followed around by a whiny Ellie.  Then it happened...the throwing up started.  Poor little Ellie lost all her breakfast down the front of Daddy's shirt.  It's so sad to see your little ones losing their stomachs, looking terrified and feverish and then when they're done, shaking all over.  As we're trying to keep me from coming into contact with any germy body fluids, I've been keeping my distance, which is hard for a Mommy to do. 

(Excuse me while I breath through a contraction...)

So a little while ago she threw up again and got it all over her sweet little red-from-fever face.  I grabbed a cool wet cloth to clean her up as Eric held her, his second shirt now splattered and in need of a change.  Just as I finished cleaning her face, I felt a strong contraction come on.  I stood there almost paralyzed, with eyes closed, holding the throw-up covered cloth in one hand, leaning against the wall to steady myself, when Jack walked up to me crying, "Mommy!  Mommy!" and holding out his bucket of sidewalk chalk for me to hold.  A second later he returned with his plastic crayon box (which he had just stuffed full of crayons and hadn't quite gotten the lid on right) and placed that in my hand as well.  So here I am, standing there in my pajamas, breathing deeply, trying to balance germs and pain and colored wax...and it hits me that this is a fine glimpse of motherhood: multi-tasking, nursing sick children, holding five thousand items in your hands at a time, putting aside your own discomfort as you care for your children's needs...and trying to breathe deeply as you go about it.  Eric made a comment echoing my own thoughts, but of course with quicker wit, which sent me into fits of laughter at the ridiculousness of the moment. 

Ah, life.  I'm beginning to realize that it's not very smart to ever think to myself, "Things just couldn't possibly get worse" because you just never know.  But it also never does me any good at all to sit and worry about the what-ifs, and so it leaves me having to just take life one thing at a time, whether it's one day, one hour, or one contraction, and pray for grace and strength to persevere.

We'd sure appreciate your prayers this weekend and in the coming week, over the birth of our baby and the wellness of our little family, for protection from illness for me, Eric, and Jack, and quick recovery for Ellie, so that none of us endangers our newest member with sickness at such a young and vulnerable state.  Thank you, friends!  We'll keep you posted on our labor progression as we are able...

Just try to ignore the spots on my bathroom mirror

So how many angles did you want of my belly, Kim?

Eric makes so much fun of me for the faces I make while taking these...so I had to include this one just for him.  He says I either look mad or look like I'm trying to do some strange model face.  I've explained to him that it's all about concentration, about finding where to hold the camera so that I don't get shots like this:

So hopefully he can get over my strange faces and just enjoy my attempts to catch this pregnancy before it's gone...let's hope sooner rather than later, right?  I have my next doctor's appointment this Thursday, so we'll see if there is anything new going on.  Contractions are coming often but not regularly, so it's most likely pre-labor stuff.  Still makes for difficult days, though.  (If we can get through this week with no more throwing up from Jack then I'd consider it a good week!  Poor baby threw up in Sunday School yesterday!)

By the way, have you all remembered to get a card for your mom yet? 

A few Jack-isms

This is Jack's new hat.  Eric made one comment when he first put it on about how it looks like a train hat, and now it is officially his Train Hat, part of his "uniform" he has to have on in order to play with his trains.  He does this often; he has to have his baseball cap, baseball shirt (from his Halloween costume), socks and tennis shoes on in order to play baseball.  He just discovered a soccer t-shirt in his drawer that is now his soccer uniform, along with a pair of very non-descript shorts that have officially been dubbed his "soccer shorts."

 

 

(I guess he liked his new hat enough to wear it while playing baseball this day!)

A few Jack sayings that I had to write down before I forgot...

--Today during the final minutes of the Lakers-Jazz game, which are usually very intense minutes in our household--i.e. don't talk to or touch Daddy--Jack was sitting next to Eric on the couch and watching with him, when in a sweet little voice he said enthusiastically, "Go Cubs!" 

--When asking Jack what video he wanted to watch this afternoon, he responded "Dora" (duh!) to which Eric answered in a lovely Scottish accent, "A fine choice!"  Jack repeated, "A pine choice." 

--The other day I was using the bathroom and Jack opened the door and said, "Mommy, what you doing?"  Then seeing what I was doing he said in the sweetest voice you've ever heard from a three-year-old, "Ohhh!  Mommy!  So pwoud you!"  He then marched over and said in what can only be described as a firstborn, know-it-all voice, "Okay.  Mommy?  Now.  Paper."  (Another time early-on in potty training he walked in on me using the bathroom and said, "Yay Mommy!" then proceeded to hand me the bag of M&M's.)

--Lately when he plays outside with his soccer ball and net, he places the ball where he wants to kick it and then says "A, B, C...GO!"

--Tonight when we put the kids to bed Jack "read" a number of books to us.  One is a book with animals hiding behind flaps that you lift up, and then say "Peek-a-boo!" when you find the animal.  Jack would lift the flap and say, "Tee-kee poo!"  Another book is all about mommies, mainly animal mommies and babies, until the very last page, and it warmed my heart to hear him repeat the words perfectly, "Mommy mine, Mommy loves me."  (He hardly ever uses the word "me" but instead says things like, "Hold you!" or "Help you!" or "Mommy loves Jack.")  Sometimes I say to him, "Mommy loves..." and he says with a giggle, "JACK!"  I love having a boy!

Eating warm, just-from-the-oven cookies and...

...blowing milk bubbles

(Notice his new haircut, which looked fine while it was still wet but has since looked not-so-fine.  I'm caving and taking him to Snippets tomorrow to get it fixed.  I thought I had the hang of it after watching them cut his hair this past year, but apparently I still have a lot to learn!  Looking forward to the summer when I can just buzz it...that's not too hard to mess up!)